Mohalenyane Phakela
THREE unknown gunmen broke into the home of Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) Member of Parliament, ‘Manketsang Molotsi in Koro Koro and assaulted her sister before they went away with M5 000 on Wednesday night.
Ms Molotsi told the Lesotho Times she was still in shock and suspected it was not an ordinary case of armed robbery, but politically-motivated.
Police Spokesperson, Inspector Mpiti Mopeli, confirmed the incident and said police had attended the scene and were investigating a case of housebreaking, armed robbery and assault.
“Police have attended the scene and investigations are in progress. So far, no suspects have been arrested,” Inspector Mopeli said.
However, Ms Molotsi suspected the three-armed men who broke into her house were not after money but to frighten her so that she can go into hiding or to harm her.
“If at all they were sent to frighten or assassinate me, I have no plans to flee my home to seek asylum in another country. I cannot leave my children alone. Those men were not here for the money because when they broke into my house, they did not immediately demand money, even when they manhandled me they did not say anything about money or valuables. They only demanded money when they went back into the house where they beat up my sister,” she said.
She explained the suspects broke into her home at around 9pm when she was having a pep-talk with her sister.
“Just before they entered the house, we heard a gunshot, which is strange if at all these were real robbers who would not want anyone to hear them before they get what they wanted. They wore balaclavas, and two men were carrying big guns while the other had a smaller gun.”
Ms Molotsi said she tried to escape through her bedroom into an unfinished part of the house, but she was caught by two men before she screamed for help.
“They did not say anything to me and immediately I told them that I was not the person they were looking for. They loosened their grip and I managed to run away in state of confusion,” Ms Molotsi said.
She said what might have saved her was that the assailants failed to distinguish her from her sister.
“After assaulting my sister, she gave them the M5,000 we were keeping in the house for buying building materials since we are renovating the house,” she said.
Ms Molotsi said her children who had managed to escape called for help but when they returned with a neighbour who is a police officer, the suspects had already fled.
